Without belonging I cannot be. I cannot be without land, without place, without connection--if not to Jerusalem of stone, light, sea, desert, olive, and vine--then to transcendent Jerusalem of spirit, of hope... - Igael Tumarkin Today a distinct body of Israeli artwork is loaded with references derived from the natural and social environment. Revealing a shift away from an earlier preoccupation and physical engagement with the land, geography, and territorial issues, current works use real or simulated objects as metaphors for different perceptions of the environment. In these works, images and objects acquire meaning through their context. Whether these are images of easily identified environmental forms such as buildings or roads, or signifiers such as a road sign or digitized forest, object-based forms have become focal points of much recent multimedia art. As artists alert us to the hazards of a modern technological society, the prevailing and long cherished Zionist legend of "reclaiming the land" is challenged by images of an endangered landscape that threatens to encroach on personal freedom.
			Uri Tzaig Forest - Postcard Rack, 1995 Postcards and postcard rack Lent by the artist, Tel Aviv The artist's aim is to break familiar modes of perception and introduce an open interpretation in their place. The digitized portions of the forest call our attention to the impending danger hidden behind the trees.